Russian trade minister quoted as saying transfer of factory ‘being considered’.
Japanese carmaker Toyota’s Saint Petersburg plant may be transferred to the Russian state entity NAMI, Russian Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov has said, according to the state-run TASS news agency.
“The transfer of Toyota’s Russian assets to NAMI is being considered,” Manturov was quoted as saying on Friday on the sidelines of a business event.
NAMI, Russia’s Central Automobile and Engine Research and Development Institute, has already snapped up plants from Renault and Nissan.
A spokesperson for Toyota said on Friday it was considering what to do regarding the plant, after having already decided last year to end vehicle production in Russia after suspending production in St Petersburg last March following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
“While it’s true that we’re considering various options, nothing has been decided at this point,” the spokesperson said.
Toyota said in September it had decided to stop vehicle production in Russia due to the interruption in supplies of key materials and parts.
Japanese companies have been more active in cutting ties in Russia over the war in Ukraine than their Asian peers.
Fewer than 100 of the more than 1,100 companies that have withdrawn from Russia or scaled back operations are from Asia, according to data from the Chief Executive Leadership Institute (CELI) at the Yale School of Management.
